1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for ranking golf drives. More particularly, the golf drive which is most favorably ranked is transmitted and displayed adjacent the tee to inform subsequent players of the distance to beat.
2. The Prior Art
Golfers are typically assisted in planning play and in keeping score by the use of a score card which lists the yardage, par value and the handicap for each hole in a golf course and also provides a place for the golfer to enter the number of strokes taken in a hole by each player in a group after play of the hole is completed. Some score cards also include a miniature map of the course that may indicate doglegs, water hazards, bunkers, and areas that are out of bounds. However, if the golfer is not at the tee or the green, the score card cannot tell him where he is and how far he has to go to reach the pin. More importantly, subsequent players at the tee have no way to rank the performance of the other players who teed off previously, since balls driven from the tee typically travel a very long distance of up to one to two hundred yards or farther.
Distance indicators for use on a golf course are known, for example from U.S. Pat. No. 5,214,679. While this patent is useful for measuring and recording distances, the tally or scoring is only made after all the golfers complete an individual hole. Another distance measuring system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,298,904. This patent utilizes RF transmission to electronically determine the distance from a driven ball to the pin. However, this information is only utilized by the golfers who have already teed off. The information is not transmitted to the tee for use by players who are about to tee off. In addition to scoring and determining distances of drives, it would be desirable to increase competition based on the tee off drive alone.